Based on initial comments to seven proposed standards on assessing and responding to risk, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board has reworked the package and is asking for public comment on the revisions. The board unanimously approved the revisions suggested by the staff of Chief Auditor Marty Baumann and agreed to put them out for […]
Risk Management
Posted inRisk Management
SEC Oks Tweaked Proxy Disclosure Enhancements for 2010
Those tasked with drafting proxy disclosures take note: The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved proposed amendments to its proxy disclosure rules, with some notable changes from the July proposing release, that you’ll have to incorporate into your 2010 proxy disclosures. The SEC, in a 4-1 vote, okayed proposed changes to the disclosures companies are […]
Posted inRisk Management
Standard Chartered Overhauls Governance
Standard Chartered, the banking group, has overhauled its boardroom structures in an effort to improve its corporate governance. The bank is going to split a board committee that covers audit and risk issues into two new bodies. A risk committee will oversee the management of the bank’s key prudential risks and will review the effectiveness […]
Posted inRisk Management
Metrics for Compliance, Metrics for Risk
Compliance Week had another one of its editorial roundtables this week, and as usual I had the privilege of leading an excellent discussion with compliance and risk executives facing some of the most formidable governance challenges out there. Our full coverage of the forum will appear in Compliance Week’s Dec. 1 newsletter, but for now […]
Posted inRisk Management
The Myth of the Black Swan
Perhaps it’s time to start shooting those black swans. For the last several months we’ve all heard more and more about risk management, primarily because a class of supposed geniuses on Wall Street ruined the economy for the rest of us. Now the buzzword in Washington is risk management, all the time. And the most […]
Posted inRisk Management
RMG Seeks Comments on Draft 2010 Proxy Policies
Reminder: RiskMetrics Group is seeking comment on its draft policy updates for the 2010 proxy season. Comments are due by Nov. 11. RMG is considering changes to its U.S. policies in four areas: Pay riskiness, adoption or renewal of non-shareholder approved poison pills, director independence, and alignment of pay and long-term performance. RMG has proposed […]
Posted inRisk Management
Tips for Conducting Exec Pay Risk Assessment: Start Now
If they haven’t already, companies, boards of directors and compensation committees ought to put a process in place for assessing the risk of their executive and employee compensation programs, partners in the law firm Winston & Strawn advise. A pending Securities and Exchange Commission proposal would require all public companies to evaluate whether any of […]
Posted inRisk Management
SEC Creates Risk, Strategy, Financial Innovation Sector
In the latest installment of its post-Madoff reforms, the Securities and Exchange Commission has created a new division aimed at identifying developing risks and trends in the financial markets. The new Division of Risk, Strategy, and Financial Innovation, led by University of Texas law professor Henry T. C. Hu, combines the Office of Economic Analysis, […]
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
Internal Auditors Share Tips on Addressing Emerging Risks
Internal audit departments straining to stay ahead of rapidly emerging risks might benefit from a peek into how other companies are coping with it. The Institute of Internal Auditors has published an alert that summarizes how internal auditors are handling five areas of risk that organizations are facing: credit risks, cost or expense reduction and […]
Posted inInternal Controls
Survey Sheds Light on Fraud Worries, Expectations
Given the economic downturn, record levels of government spending, and the uptick in enforcement, it’s not surprising most executives expect fraud and misconduct risks to stay the same or increase over the next year. That’s one finding from KPMG’s 2009 Fraud Survey, which polled more than 200 executives on the nature of fraud and misconduct […]